Does your neighbourhood have a ‘library of things’? This relatively new movement gives locals the ability to borrow used tools, appliances or more things we would otherwise buy, use sometimes then leave forgotten in the garage for months or even years.
Next week is National Recycling Week, and this year we are being reminded that much of what we currently send to landfill is actually valuable material that could be reused, repurposed or recycled.
This year’s theme ‘Waste isn’t waste until it’s wasted’ is about keeping those valuable materials in circulation and out of landfill, whether at home, work or school.
Running from November 7-13, National Recycling Week provides opportunities for residents and workplaces to learn simple methods of reducing their environmental footprint and preventing waste. Host or join recycling themed events, brush up on recycling knowledge with educational resources, learn about new developments in recycling policy and technology or discover tricks to reduce what is going to landfill and ensure resources don’t go to waste.
Since National Recycling Week was founded in 1996, the annual recycling rate in Australia has increased from just 7% to more than 60% of all disposed materials, according to Planet Ark’s research.
That means we have gone from recycling just 1.5 million tonnes of material recycled to a massive 43 million tonnes each year.
But Planet Ark co-CEO Rebecca Gilling feels there is still more we could be doing to ensure valuable resources don’t end up wasted in landfill.
“That’s why this year Planet Ark wants people to pause and think about what they are currently sending to landfill and ask whether it is waste after all”, she says.
Planet Ark also has tools and tips to help community groups, councils, households and workplaces to get involved in the National Recycling Week Resource Hub. To find out if there is a library of things near you, learn more or get involved, visit nationalrecyclingweek.com.au.
